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Hong Kong's reputation as a global financial center means that there are many highly qualified professionals living and working here who have made use of LinkedIn to find work overseas.
There are also plenty of companies based in Hong Kong keen on hiring people from around the world. This suggests that if you're looking for a job in Hong Kong then you should consider signing up with LinkedIn. If you already have a profile but want to make sure your details are correct or complete, check out our guide to updating your LinkedIn page.
If you don't know much about LinkedIn at all, this article will help you understand what it does and how it can benefit you when searching for employment abroad. We'll explain why so many businesses worldwide rely upon the site and cover some key features you might not be aware of.
LinkedIn is primarily targeted towards business users across multiple industries. In fact, its main purpose is to connect professionals from different fields together in order to foster relationships and build stronger networks. It's easy to see why more than 90% of Fortune 500 companies use the service.
A recent study by LinkedInsights found that 80% of recruiters had never heard of LinkedIn before 2016. The figures were even worse among those aged under 35 - just 10% of them said they knew anything about the company at all!
However, despite being relatively unknown outside of North America, LinkedIn is actually one of the top three most visited sites globally alongside Facebook and Google+. As of June 2019, there are over 400 million users registered with the service. That makes it one of the largest professional social media platforms in the world.
The US leads the way in terms of total number of members, followed closely by Canada, India, Brazil and Mexico. However, the majority of these users come from Europe - Germany, France, Japan and Spain lead the list. Other large markets include South Korea, Australia and Russia.
LinkedIn is widely considered to be one of the best places online to look for a new job. And thanks to the sheer volume of profiles available, it's possible to explore thousands of options without ever having to leave the comfort of your home.
But while LinkedIn is hugely popular amongst employers in the United States and elsewhere, it isn't quite as big a deal in Asia. Despite being founded in 2003, almost two thirds of all active users live in North America. Just 12% of accounts belong to someone living in Asia.
This may seem surprising given that Hong Kong was once known as "the city too small to fail". But while the title remains true today, it doesn't necessarily mean that the city's population is particularly tech savvy. Indeed, fewer than 1 in 5 people regularly access the internet via their mobile devices.
Nonetheless, it seems clear that LinkedIn continues to generate interest within Asian societies. So whether you're looking to hire employees in Hong Kong or anywhere else in Asia, chances are that you'll find lots of suitable candidates waiting to join your team using this website.
While the vast majority of members reside in North America, LinkedIn allows anyone to create a free account. Thereafter, membership costs $29 per month.
As mentioned above, there are far fewer users living in Asia than you'd expect. This is partly due to the region's notoriously strict privacy laws. But another reason could well be that LinkedIn simply hasn't taken off in the rest of the world yet.
For example, less than 2 percent of active accounts belong to people residing in Africa. Only 6% come from Latin America and just 3% hail from Oceania. By contrast, 7% of members are based in Eastern Europe.
One thing that really stands out though is the huge difference between male and female usage rates. While men represent 61% of all active members, women make up just 39%.
That figure drops significantly further down the age scale. Less than 20% of 18 year olds have signed up for a LinkedIn account compared to 55% of 50+ year olds.
Singapore is often seen as a prime location for foreign investors seeking to expand into Asia. Many of the world's biggest banks now have offices located here.
It's no surprise therefore that the local government wants to encourage young professionals to stay put rather than move away. To do this, they've launched the 'Global Talent Programme'. This initiative aims to attract talented individuals from around the globe by offering generous incentives such as grants, scholarships, internships and placements.
Thanks to this programme, more than 100,000 students from 150 countries have graduated since 2015 alone. These graduates have gone on to earn millions of dollars worth of awards including Fulbright Scholarships and Rhodes Prizes.
Yet despite all of this support from the Government, Singaporeans themselves aren't exactly rushing to sign up for LinkedIn. According to statistics provided by SmartCompany, just 4.6% of locals currently choose to register with the website.
In comparison, there are twice as many people from Indonesia using LinkedIn, along with 1.3 times as many citizens of Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.
On the plus side, the number of Filipino and Indian users has increased dramatically over the past eight months. Meanwhile, the proportion of users hailing from Turkey, Italy and Saudi Arabia has grown substantially during the same period.
Interestingly, although there are many Chinese speakers on LinkedIn, it appears that they mostly prefer to communicate with fellow nationals instead. More than half of all accounts belonging to Chinese residents are connected to someone born in mainland China.
Meanwhile, the percentage of non-Chinese speaking members is slightly higher among Filipinos (17%), Malaysians (13%) and Indonesians (11%).
So while LinkedIn clearly won't get rid of any potential opportunities for expatriates living in Singapore, it would appear that the market is dominated by native English speakers.
Australia is another hotbed for talent recruitment. Thanks to strong economic growth since 2008, the country's economy has become increasingly reliant upon skilled workers. Companies like Apple, Microsoft and IBM are continually recruiting staff from all corners of the globe.
And according to LinkedIn, Australia is ranked fourth in the world for the highest number of unique visitors each month. This puts it ahead of both New Zealand and the UK.
Despite this impressive statistic, however, Australian users are less likely to be actively engaged with the website than anyone else in the world. They only log onto LinkedIn every four days on average.
By contrast, Americans are the most dedicated users. On average, they visit the site every five days. Australians are also the least likely to have previously worked for a multinational corporation.
Only 17% of Australian users have experience in finance or management roles. But this compares to 34% of American users. Similarly, just 14% of Aussies have worked in sales roles whereas 27% of Americans have done the same.
These stats suggest that Australian employers are struggling to fill positions with experienced applicants. Perhaps that explains why the country ranks second last for the quality of applications received.
LinkedIn is certainly popular in Australia. But perhaps the real question we need to ask ourselves is whether it's worth making use of the website to search for a job in Australia. After all, the competition is fierce.
Pakistan is arguably better known for cricket than technology. Yet despite this, LinkedIn boasts a rapidly growing user base. The country has one of the fastest growing economies in the world, meaning that many of its inhabitants are eager to take advantage of the latest trends.
According to data published by LinkedIn, Pakistani users tend to spend longer browsing the site than others on the planet. They also post more content to their own profiles than any other nationality on the network.
Although there are now hundreds of thousands of Pakistani LinkedIn users scattered throughout the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia, very few of them live in the country itself. Instead, they predominantly hail from neighboring nations like Iran, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.
With regards to demographics, Pakistani LinkedIn users are heavily skewed towards males. Around 70% of accounts are held by men, compared to 30% owned by females.
Perhaps surprisingly, the ratio of female versus male users varies depending where you live. Those living in Pakistan have the lowest gender split. At 47%, women comprise just 15% of accounts.
Those in Oman have the next lowest rate at 46%. But in Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Lebanon and Qatar women dominate the scene at 66%-70%.
Although more members reside in North America than anywhere else, the bulk of activity takes place in the European Union. Some 85% of all posts originate from EU member states.
Germany and France are unsurprisingly the most common locations for posting messages. But Ireland, Poland and Sweden round out the top ten with each accounting for roughly 8% of all activity.
Most of the remaining activity comes from smaller countries like Austria, Switzerland, Denmark and Finland.
Hong Kong (AP) -- For nearly seven years, LinkedIn has been the only major Western social networking platform still operating in China. The site provides people with professional connections and business opportunities to connect online, but its popularity among Chinese users remains low compared with other platforms such as WeChat or QQ that also operate on mobile phones.
People like 32-year-old Jason Liu see it as an important career enhancing tool. "I think this will help me get my foot into the door," he said outside his workplace at a hotel restaurant near Victoria Harbour.
Liu works as a waiter in one of the many restaurants lining the waterfront promenade where tourists throng during their visit to Hong Kong's famous shopping district. He uses LinkedIn every day when he goes out to work, but so far hasn't had any luck applying for new positions through the website. Instead, he says he's relied more heavily on friends than the internet to find better paid jobs.
"LinkedIn is very good for getting your name known if you are just starting out," he said. "But if you want to make money from it, then forget about it."
The lack of interest among young professionals in using LinkedIn in China might be partly because of how much they value privacy. In 2014, LinkedIn introduced a feature called Smart Lookup, which allows employers to search for potential candidates by entering keywords related to skills and experience. This was met with considerable hostility by some members of the public who worried that their personal information could end up being shared with companies.
It's not clear whether LinkedIn's move away from China would have affected its appeal among local businesses. But analysts say the company's decision has hurt its reputation abroad. It no longer makes sense for foreign firms based in mainland China to use LinkedIn since it doesn't offer them access to talent overseas. And most importantly, there aren't enough high-profile employees working inside mainland China to support the operation abroad.
On Tuesday, China's state media reported that LinkedIn announced plans to close down two data centers in Beijing and Shanghai due to weak demand for its services. The news came after the company posted lower profit forecasts earlier this month following disappointing sales growth over the summer months.
In response, LinkedIn denied that it was closing down operations in China, saying instead that it planned to reduce headcounts across all regions.
If you're interested in opening a LinkedIn profile in China, follow these steps:
Log onto LinkedIn via your computer or phone browser.
Click Sign Up Now. You'll then need to enter your email address and password. Click Next.
Select either English/Chinese or both languages. If you choose both, you won't receive notifications in your native language until you log back in again later.
Choose between Individual Membership ($15 per year), Business Premium and Enterprise ($30 per user).
Pay $5.99 to join LinkedUp Plus, which gives you additional features including enhanced security and protection against spam messages.
After paying, click Continue. You'll now need to verify your identity before accessing your free account.
Once verified, you should start receiving invitations to join groups and events within LinkedIn. Also note that while you can create profiles without registering, you must pay to upgrade to a premium subscription to gain full benefits.
There are plenty of places hiring staff around Asia to fill vacancies right now. A quick Google search reveals hundreds of ads offering employment opportunities in countries ranging from Japan to Indonesia. Here are a few examples:
Shenzhen, Guangdong Province - IT manager needed for software development team. Must possess excellent communication and interpersonal skill. Salary negotiable. Apply Online!
Bangkok, Thailand - Data entry operator required. Full time position. Pay negotiable. Please send CV. Email subject line: Job Application [First Name] + Last Name
Shanghai, Jiangsu Province - Senior Software Engineer / Senior C++ Developer required. Permanent contract. Excellent remuneration package offered. EOE. Send resume in PDF format to hr@softek.com.cn. Subject Line: Resume for Senior Software Engineer/C++ Developer
Beijing, Hubei Province - Junior Programmer Analyst Required. Full Time Position. Negotiable salary. No expiry date. Please submit application letter & cv to hr@wuhu.gov.cn. Subject Line: Programme Manager/Programming Analyst Applications
Yes, it is. The US-based firm is listed on NASDAQ under the symbol LNKD and is headquartered in Mountain View, California. It operates offices in 15 cities globally, with headquarters located in Dublin, Ireland.
LinkedIn also runs a number of subsidiaries and partnerships throughout Europe, North America and Australia. These include European Union subsidiary Linkedin France S.A., Canadian affiliate Linkedin Canada Inc. and Australian partner, Linkedin Australia Pty Ltd.
LinkedIn employs 1,800 people worldwide, according to its 2015 annual report. Of those, 860 worked directly for the parent company. Another 1,000 were employed by subsidiaries and partners. That means about 10 percent of the total workforce work for LinkedIn International.
LinkedIn International includes subsidiaries in Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, UK and Ukraine. There are also several joint ventures with Chinese counterparts in Beijing, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Shenyang and Suzhou.
According to LinkedIn's own statistics, the majority of its customers come from the United States. However, the firm does have an increasing customer base in South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Vietnam. Other countries where users are relatively active include India, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Chile.
Although most people probably don't know it's even possible to sign up for a LinkedIn account outside of the U.S., it actually isn't too difficult. Most websites simply ask you to provide your country of residence at registration.
For example, here's what happens when you try logging into Facebook in New Zealand:
You're taken straight to Facebook's home page.
And here's what happens when you try signing up for Twitter in Russia:
Here's what you see when trying to register for a LinkedIn account in Russia:
As you can see, LinkedIn accepts accounts from anywhere provided that you've got a valid passport and proof of legal residency.
However, unlike Facebook and Twitter, LinkedIn offers limited functionality to non-U.S. residents. Users cannot change their display names once registered, nor can they upload photos or videos. They can access basic details about themselves, such as their current employer and education history, but nothing else.
LinkedIn also limits the amount of content stored locally on your device. When logged in, you can store up to 5 gigabytes worth of files locally. Any larger amounts will require uploading them to the cloud first.
This article originally appeared on TechRadar Pro. Republished with permission.
On the surface, there are many similarities between LinkedIN and Facebook. Both companies have a large user base and both offer easy ways to share photos and videos with friends and family. But when it comes to the Chinese market, things get a little more complicated.
In recent months, we've seen several news reports about Chinese users being banned from using the site due to censorship concerns over keywords that may be deemed politically sensitive. This includes words related to "democracy" or "Hong Kong." At first glance, this seems like another case of government interference in the Internet space - but maybe not so much.
LinkedIn International launched its operations in mainland China back in 2012. The U.S.-based professional network was previously blocked by the Great Firewall of China until just last year. In March 2013, however, the country's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology published a report stating that LinkedIn had officially broken ties with the Communist Party of China and would no longer censor content within its borders.
This means that even though LinkedIn is technically banned in China, some people can use the service if they know where to look. In fact, there's one group of users who regularly take advantage of this loophole. It's called the "Hidden Linkedin," and it's made up of foreign expats living in China. These guys spend their days searching for job openings while hiding behind VPNs (virtual private networks), proxies and sometimes even Tor browsers. They're also known as "Linkedin Refugees."
So what exactly does LinkedIn offer these hidden refugees? We spoke to several members of this community and asked them how they make sense of the situation. Read on to find out why they believe LinkedIn is still useful despite all the political pressure.
LinkedIn is primarily used for business purposes. However, anyone can join and begin building connections through the website. There are various levels of access depending upon your location. If you live outside of Asia, you'll need to pay $29/month to become a Premium member. That will give you access to additional features such as advanced searches and message alerts.
If you don't want to shell out any money, you can always sign up at the free Basic level which gives you access to basic profile information and limited messaging capabilities. You can read more about the difference here.
The idea of linking online contacts across different regions dates back to 1995. When Steve Jobs announced Apple Computer's plans to launch iTunes and connect it to AOL Instant Messenger, he said, "We think the best way to link those two worlds together is to build an instant messenger into iTunes...so I'm going to demo something today that demonstrates that technology."
It took him three tries before he got his wish. By 1998, AIM and ICQ were integrated into iTunes. The next step came in 2000 when Microsoft bought Skype.com, thus making it possible to chat via PC, Mac or mobile devices without leaving the app itself.
That same year, Microsoft released Windows Live Messenger. And in 2003, Microsoft acquired LinkedIn. Since then, it has slowly built up a global presence through partnerships with organizations like IBM, Cisco Systems and Accenture.
Today, LinkedIn is available in 195 countries around the world. As far as the Chinese market goes, however, it's considered illegal because the country doesn't recognize the concept of a non-government organization. So unless you work for Google, Facebook or Twitter, you won't see a LinkedIn logo anywhere in China.
Since most of us aren't fluent in Mandarin, we rely heavily on our English speaking friends to help us navigate the system. Luckily, there are plenty of resources available to help us understand what each button on the screen actually does.
For example, clicking the down arrow beside the word "search" leads to a list of categories. Once you select one, you'll be given a variety of options ranging from Companies & Industries to Education & Training. Each category contains hundreds of subcategories. These include fields like IT Professionals, Accounting Executives, Business Development Managers and Marketing Specialists amongst others.
Once you locate a position you'd like to apply for, simply click on the Apply Now button. Then enter your contact details and submit your CV. After submitting your application, you'll receive an email confirmation letting you know whether or not your resume has been accepted.
While browsing the web, you might notice a few terms popping up alongside familiar brands. One of the most common ones involves a URL ending in.cn. For instance, if you see a mention of "LNKD" next to a familiar brand name, chances are good that you're looking at a piece of content hosted on the Chinese version of LinkedIn.
You can quickly check if something is legitimate by checking the source code. Just hover your mouse cursor over the text and hit F12 to open the Developer Tools window. Look for the HTML tag associated with the domain name. If it says "http://www.linkedin.cn/" instead of "https://linkedin.com", you're dealing with a fake.
Another trick worth mentioning is to check the date stamp on the page. All authentic content should contain a time stamp somewhere near the bottom of the page indicating when the content was originally posted. Anything older than six months probably isn't genuine.
Lastly, if you ever feel uncomfortable posting a comment on a particular blog post, you can easily unsubscribe by following the instructions provided at the end of the article. That's assuming the author hasn't already deleted the comments section.
LinkedIn Hiring Trends 2017
You can also visit the LinkedIn Careers Center to learn more about local hiring trends based on skillsets and industries. Here you'll find everything from current vacancies to salary data.
There are also lots of tools designed specifically for recruiters who are interested in finding candidates abroad. Some of the best ones include Jobscan, Indeed Worldwide and Seekr.
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